More than a third of video subscribers claim ultra-high-definition (UHD) content is an important criterion in their choice of video services, across five markets surveyed. Among households with both pay TV and online video subscriptions, that preference rises to 50 percent.

According to the “Connected Devices and Media Consumption” survey from IHS Markit, TV content discovery is at the heart of the battle among TV and video providers to convince consumers that their user experience is both easy to use and truly personalized. Even with smart digital assistants now integrated into TVs, successful personalization will come down to the ability to really know their customers and help them find what they want to watch.

Amazon Japan started offering Amazon Channels with 20 channels available for its Prime Video users to subscribe on 14th June 2018. The Genre of channels range from movies, TV programs and sports to music, news, documentaries and hobby/culture.

The IHS Markit Global Cord-Cutting Tracker identifies the markets in which traditional pay TV is declining, a trend that is in most cases the result of cord-cutting – i.e. customers of traditional pay TV services (cable, satellite, IPTV or pay DTT) cancelling their subscriptions in favour of online video alternatives.

Danish telecommunications provider TDC Group has scrapped its plan to acquire the Nordic broadcasting assets of Sweden’s Modern Times Group, after accepting a takeover proposal from Macquarie and a group of Danish pension funds last month.

HBO signed a content deal with Amazon in January 2018 to license 50 HBO series on Amazon Prime Video in Japan. Existing Prime subscribers will be able to watch HBO shows, including Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley, The Sopranos and The Wire, without having to pay an additional fee. HBO content will be available on Amazon Prime Video in Japan starting April 1, 2018. Details on the duration of the deal are undisclosed.

Gemalto announced (on 03 April 2017) that it will provide SoftBank with its remote SIM provisioning platform, the backbone for the operator’s new eSIM offering. The new platform will enable SoftBank’s customers to remotely provision eSIMs with profiles to connect to the mobile networks of their choice. SoftBank is targeting opportunities in a range of sectors, such as connected cars, wearables, traffic management and smart meters. In the connected car scenario, customers will be able to remotely select their choice of carrier when driving into a new country.

This report provides a holistic view of Android OS across the pay TV and OTT retail STB landscape - focusing on the strategies and rationale of pay TV operators who have chosen Android implementations. The report also analyses the OTT STB market and the impact of Google's current vision of its Android platform.

Amazon has unveiled its plan to add original content exclusively on its Prime Video service in Japan. There will be 12 new original programmes, including kids’ content, comedy and documentaries, available for Amazon Prime Video subscribers in Japan

Japan's paid-for digital video market, which includes both subscription (SVoD) and transactional (TVoD) business models, grew by 49% in 2015, generating consumer level revenues of JPY 50.6 billion (USD 418 million). The growth is being driven by new international and local digital video service launches and by positive developments in the underlying economy.

Swedish media business Modern Times Group (MTG) experienced its best quarterly growth in Nordic premium TV subscribers in six years in Q4 2015, despite the continued decline of its Viasat satellite subscriber base. Premium subscribers totalled 996,000 at the end of 2015, up 24,000 on Q3 2015. This was driven by an increase in the number of subscribers taking premium services via third-party networks, up 37,000 during the quarter, more than compensating for the 14,000 decrease in DTH customers. MTG has not disclosed subscriber figures for its OTT service Viaplay, but it singled it out as the key driver towards 3% growth in total Nordic pay TV net sales, which reached Skr 5,926 million (€633 million) for the full year.

This report examines the impact of Netflix's SVOD services on the physical video business in the USA and UK, and in particular on the sale and rental of movies and TV content. It assesses the likely impact of Netflix's 2015 launches on the physical video markets of Australia and Japan.

Pan-Nordic broadcaster and pay TV provider MTG has acquired DreamHack, Scandinavia’s largest esports player. The deal for 100% of the company, which runs local and global esports leagues, tournaments and championships, values DreamHack at SKr244 million ($28 million).